Article 2 — General Development Regulations

Division 4: Coastal Overlay Zone (Added 12-9-1997 by O-18451 N.S.; effective 1-1-2000.) (Added 9-19-2005 by O-19413 N.S.; effective 10-19-2005.)

The purpose of the Coastal Overlay Zone is to protect and enhance the quality of public access and coastal resources.

(Added 12-9-1997 by O-18451 N.S.; effective 1-1-2000.)

• (a) This overlay zone applies to all property located within the boundaries designated on Map No. C-730.1, Map No. C-908, and Map No. C-1028, filed in the office of the City Clerk as Documents No. 00-17067-1, No. 00-18872, and No. 00-21719. These areas are shown generally on Diagram 132-04A.

• (b) Table 132-04A shows the sections that contain the supplemental regulations and the type of permit required by this division, if any, for specific types of development proposals in this overlay zone. Coastal Development Permit procedures are provided in Chapter 12, Article 6, Division 7.

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Table 132-04A

Coastal Overlay Zone Applicability

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(Amended 10-16-2000 by O-18872 N.S.; effective 9-11-2001; amended 1-9-2001 by O-18910 N.S.; effective 8-8-2001.)

(Amended 10-22-2013 by O-20309 N.S.; effective 12-12-2013.) (Amended 1-8-2020 by O-21164 N.S.; effective 2-9-2020.) (Amended 3-7-2023 by O-21618 N.S.; effective 5-6-2023.) (Amended 7-22-2024 by O-21836 N.S.; effective 10-5-2024.)

[Editors Note: Amendments as adopted by O-21836 N.S. will not apply within the Coastal Overlay Zone until the California Coastal Commission certifies it as a Local Coastal Program Amendment.

Click the link to view the Strikeout Ordinance highlighting changes to prior language http://docs.sandiego.gov/municode_strikeout_ord/O-21836-SO.pdf ]

• (a) If there is an existing or potential public view and the site is designated in the applicable land use plan as a public view to be protected,

  • (1) The applicant shall design and site the coastal development in such a manner as to preserve, enhance or restore the designated public view, and

  • (2) The decision maker shall condition the project to ensure that critical public views to the ocean and shoreline are maintained or enhanced.

• (b) A visual corridor of not less than the side yard setbacks or more than 10 feet in width, and running the full depth of the premises , shall be preserved as a deed restriction as a condition of Coastal Development Permit approval whenever the following conditions exist:

  • (1) The proposed development is located on premises that lies between the shoreline and the first public roadway, as designated on Map Drawing No. C-731; and

  • (2) The requirement for a visual corridor is feasible and will serve to preserve, enhance or restore public views of the ocean or shoreline identified in the applicable land use plan .

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• (c) If there is an existing or potential public view between the ocean and the first public roadway, but the site is not designated in a land use plan as a view to be protected, it is intended that views to the ocean shall be preserved, enhanced or restored by deed restricting required side yard setback areas to cumulatively form functional view corridors and preventing a walled effect from authorized development.

• (d) Where remodeling is proposed and existing legally established development is to be retained that precludes establishment of the desired visual access as delineated above, preservation of any existing public view on the site will be accepted, provided that the existing public view is not reduced through the proposed remodeling.

• (e) Open fencing and landscaping may be permitted within the view corridors and visual accessways, provided such improvements do not significantly obstruct public views of the ocean. Landscaping shall be planted and maintained to preserve public views.

(Retitled from “Supplemental Use Regulations of the Coastal Overlay Zone” on 1-9-2001 by O-18910 N.S.; effective 8-8-2001.)

• (a) Within the Coastal Overlay Zone, the following regulations apply to dwelling units constructed outside of Special Flood Hazard Areas and within an area of future sea level rise (within a 75-year horizon), as determined by the City Manager based on the most current sea level rise vulnerability maps:

  • (1) The dwelling units shall comply with the regulations in Section 143.0146(c) and if applicable, Section 143.0146(g). The base flood elevation utilized, and the applicability of Section 143.0146(g), shall be based on the FIRM Zone of the Special Flood Hazard Area in closest proximity to the premises on which the dwelling unit is proposed. The permit requirements of 143.0110(b) and other regulations of Chapter 14, Article 3, Division 1 do not apply unless the premises contains Environmentally Sensitive Lands.

    • (A) Hard shoreline armoring shall not be constructed to protect dwelling units from the effects of sea level rise.

    • (B) The record owner of the dwelling unit shall, in a form that is approved by the City Manager, acknowledge the following:

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• (i) The dwelling unit is located in an area of future sea level rise that may become hazardous in the future;

• (ii) Sea level rise could render it difficult or impossible to provide public services to the premises ;

• (iii) The boundary between public land (tidelands) and private land may shift with rising seas and the development approval does not permit encroachment onto public trust land;

• (iv) Additional adaptation strategies may be required in the future to address sea level rise consistent with the Coastal Act and certified Local Coastal Program ; and

• (v) The dwelling unit may be required to be removed or relocated and the premises restored to City standards if it becomes unsafe; and

• (vi) The record owner shall waive in writing any rights under Public Resources Code Section 30235 and related Local Coastal Program policies to any hard shoreline armoring to protect the dwelling unit .

• (C) The record owner of the dwelling unit shall provide written notice to all occupants of the dwelling unit of the provisions in Section 132.0404(a)(1)(B) upon occupancy.

(“Supplemental Regulations within Areas of Future Sea Level Rise” added 3-7-2023 by O-21618 N.S.; effective 5-6-2023.)

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Article 2: Overlay Zones

Division 5: Coastal Height Limit Overlay Zone (Added 12-9-1997 by O-18451 N.S.; effective 1-1-2000.)

The purpose of the Coastal Height Limit Overlay Zone is to provide a supplemental height limit for specific coastal areas as enacted by the voters of the City of San Diego.

(Added 12-9-1997 by O-18451 N.S.; effective 1-1-2000.)

• (a) This overlay zone applies to the coastal area that is described in Section 132.0505(b) and is shown on Map No. C-380, filed in the office of the City Clerk as Document No. 743737. This area is shown generally on Diagram 132-05A.

• (b) Table 132-05A shows the sections that contain the supplemental regulations and the type of permit required by this division, if any, for specific types of development proposals in this overlay zone.

Table 132-05A Coastal Height Limit Overlay Zone Applicability

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(Added 12-9-1997 by O-18451 N.S.; effective 1-1-2000.)

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• (a) Notwithstanding any section to the contrary, no building or addition to a building shall be constructed with a height in excess of thirty feet within the Coastal Zone of the City of San Diego.

• (b) The words “Coastal Zone” as used within this section shall mean that land and water area of the City of San Diego from the northern City limits, south to the border of the Republic of Mexico, extending seaward to the outer limits of City jurisdiction and extending inland to the location of Interstate 5 on January 1, 1971. This limitation shall not apply to:

  • (1) that land area of the Coastal Zone bounded by National City on the south, San Diego Bay on the west and Laurel Street or the southwesterly projection of Laurel Street on the north or,

  • (2) that the land area of the Coastal Zone bounded by Ingraham Street on the west, Sea World Drive on the south, Mission Bay on the north and the boat ramp access road in South Shores Park on the east or

  • (3) that land area of the Coastal Zone approximately bounded on the north and west by Camino de la Plaza, on the south by the international border with the Republic of Mexico, and on the east by Virginia Avenue, including that adjacent strip of land of approximately forty by 520 feet which is located south of Camino de la Plaza and east of Virginia Avenue, all as more particularly described as Document No. OO-18836, a copy of which is on file with the City Clerk; and

  • (4) that land area of the Coastal Zone within the Midway-Pacific Highway Community Plan area approximately bounded by the San Diego River on the north; San Diego International Airport and Laurel Street on the south; Interstate 5 on the east; and Sports Arena Boulevard, Midway Drive, Kemper Street, Rosecrans Street, and Lytton Street, including the Kemper Neighborhood Village and the Lytton District, on the west; as more particularly described in Document No. OO-21508, a copy of which is on file with the City Clerk.

• (c) The base of measurement of the height shall be in accordance with the Uniform Building Code of 1970.

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• (d) Other than the restoration of the chimney and rooftop cupola as part of the historic restoration of the 1915 Agar/Mission Brewery Building located at Washington and Hancock Streets in San Diego, California, and as described in sections 132.0505(b)(1) through (b)(4), there shall be no exception to the provisions of this section.

• (e) No building or structure or addition to a building or structure within the land described in exception section 132.0505(b)(2), shall exceed one-half the height of the existing Sea World Sky Tower on that land using the base of measurement in accordance with the Uniform Building Code of 1970.

• (f) No taxpayer funds shall be spent for any improvements in connection with a building or structure or addition to a building or structure within the land described in exception section 132.0505(b)(2).

• (g) The exception set forth in section 132.0505(b)(2) shall remain in effect as long as the land described therein is used for recreational, exhibition, educational, research and scientific purposes.

• (h) No more than five acres of the approximately sixty-six acre site described in section 132.0505(b)(3) may contain buildings or structures, or additions to buildings or structures, measuring up to 150 feet in height. No more than five additional acres of the remaining portion of the property may contain buildings or structures, or additions to buildings or structures, measuring up to eighty feet in height. As to the remaining portion of the property, no buildings or structures, or additions to buildings or structures, shall exceed fifty feet in height. The footprint of the entire building or structure shall be used to calculate the five acres, whether or not the entire building or structure measures 150 feet or eight feet in height. The measurement of height shall use the base of measurement in accordance with the Uniform Building Code of 1970.

• (i) This section may be amended, including an amendment to make an exception to the thirty-foot height limitation, only by a majority vote of the voters of the City of San Diego.

[Editor’s Note: Section 132.0505 is a codification of Proposition D, which was adopted by the people of the City of San Diego and became effective on December 7, 1972. Section 132.0505 was amended by Proposition L adopted on November 8, 1988; amended by Proposition D on November 3, 1998; and, amended by Proposition C adopted on November 7, 2000.]

(Added 12-9-1997 by O-18451 N.S.; effective 1-1-2000.)

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(Amended 7-24-2020 by O-21220 N.S.; effective 12-8-2020.) [Editor’s Note: Section 132.0505 was amended by Measure E and adopted on December 8, 2020. ]

(Amended 7-29-2022 by O-21508 N.S.; effective 12-12-2022.) (Amended 6-11-2024 by O-21811 N.S.; effective 7-11-2024.)

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Article 2: Overlay Zones